The Paper Flower
by Arche De Katze
Summary: COMPLETE! A young girl is transfered to the prison to be studied at Dr. Chilton's request. With Chilton on vacation and Barney as the girl's friend, it seems like Dr. Lecter is the only one doing any studying.
1. Default Chapter

Barney walks down the hall to Dr. Lecter's cell carrying a food tray. He looks in at Dr. Lector who is sitting at his desk reading a book.  
  
"Hello Doctor."  
  
"Good afternoon Barney." Dr. Lecter stands and smiles. Barney puts the tray into the sliding drawer and pushes it through. Dr. Lecter's eyes fall onto an origami rose tucked neatly in Barney's shirt pocket. "May I ask where you got the flower? Its quite well made."  
  
Barney removes the flower from his pocket and looks at it smiling, "A new patient here made it for me. Her name is Tiffany. I knew her before she was arrested and Chilton wanted her transferred here from Juvenile Hall to study her."  
  
"Juvenile? How old is she?"  
  
"13." He pockets the flower, "I'm sorry Doctor. I need to get back to my post. She is waiting for me."  
  
Dr. Lecter smirks, "She can leave her cell too? I'm starting to like this child." Barney nods. "Just don't tell Chilton. He wouldn't like that. And she isn't very dangerous unless she gets around sharp objects or fire."  
  
Barney starts walking back down the hall and hears Doctor Lecter say back to him. "Tell her I said Hello."  
  
Barney closes the bar door behind him and looks over to see a young teenage girl with blond shoulder length hair sitting in a leather chair and making more origami. Tiffany finishes a fold and sets down a red crane.  
  
"What were you and Dr. Lecter talking about? I saw you two on the screen." She motions to the black and white T.V. screen that is focused on Hannibal's cell. Barney sits beside her. He picks up a piece of colored paper and an unused guide booklet.  
  
"He said 'Hello' and he likes the flower you made me. Said it was 'well made.'"  
  
Tiffany smiles and blushes. She looks at the screen showing Dr. Lecter and sees him look up at the camera, at her. She picks up a small, shiny piece of deep red paper and a large piece of green paper. Her fingers move quickly and precisely over the edges of the paper, folding and creasing. In a matter of minutes she had finished a beautiful rose and a stem. Since Barney refused to give her any scissors she bit a hole in the bottom of the rose and put the stem through the bottom. She sits for a few seconds, admiring her work, then stands and carries the flower to Barney who is struggling to make a simple hat. Tiffany sighs and shakes her head.  
  
"Your folding it backwards, try flipping it over."  
  
Barney looks at the picture in the booklet and slowly turns it over to the other side. "Thanks" His eyes fall on the flower. "Another one?"  
  
Tiffany smirks, "Sorry Barney. This one's for Dr. Lecter. Can you take this to him?" He gives her a skeptical look. "Please..."  
  
Barney takes the flower and walks back down the hall to Dr. Lecter's cell. Tiffany jumps the counter and lands on her feet in front of the screen. She watches it closely as Barney talks to Hannibal then puts the flower in the drawer and pushes it threw. Her spirits lift and she wishes that she could read lips. Dr. Lecter walks over to the drawer and looks in. He says something to Barney and without removing the flower pushes it back through. Barney nods and takes the flower back. Tiffany stares jaw-dropped all her hope gone as Barney comes back in but he doesn't close the door behind himself, instead he holds it open and motions for her to come. She slowly stands up and walks over to the bar door. Barney smiles, "He wants you to give it to him personally." She takes the flower and starts to go through the door to the hall when Barney grabs her arm. "Stay to the right until you get to him. He is the last cell. Stay away from the glass."  
  
Tiff nods. "Yeah I know the drill." She hears the door close behind her and Barney presses a button and the door to the hall opens. She takes a deep breath and starts the long walk. 


	2. The Meeting

Tiffany moves slowly past the first three cells hearing the yells at her. At the cell right before Dr. Lecter's, Miggs jumps from his bed and lunges at her reaching his arm through the bars. She backs further away from the cell and hears him say, "Here kitty kitty kitty."  
  
She sends him an icy glare making him pull his arm back and get quiet. She pulls herself together and steps in front of the glass cell. Dr. Hannibal Lecter stands polity in the center of his cell waiting for her.  
  
"Tiffany, I presume?" he asks motioning to the chair.  
  
Tiffany glances at the chair. She smiles at Dr. Lecter and sits, "Thank you Doctor."  
  
"I really must apologize for Miggs. He is in need of a lesson in manners."  
  
"Oh its no problem."  
  
"I'm sure. You can take care of yourself."  
  
Tiffany looks up at him, something in her eyes Hannibal knew well. Worry. He smirks wondering how deep he can dig into her thoughts.  
  
He continues, "That is how you ended up here, isn't it?" He walks over to his desk and shuffles through some of his papers. "Tell me. What does the file say about you?"  
  
Tiffany calms herself. She thinks back to the bloody chaos she caused and gave a little smile at Dr. Lecter, "Just lit a few fires. Didn't know that cops would take arson as a big deal."  
  
"How many houses?"  
  
She was silent and the smile was gone. Hannibal saw her eyes leave his and tilted his head slightly.  
  
"How many houses did you burn down Tiffany?"  
  
She looks back up at him. "13." That's all Dr. Lecter needed.  
  
"13 houses, on your 13th birthday. Am I correct?"  
  
Tiffany nods, "Yeah." An odd gleam comes to her eyes and she smiles. "It was exhilarating. Lighting my candles instead of blowing them out," She takes a slow breath, "They never stood a chance." A look of fear comes to her eyes. She knew as soon as she uttered that last word she had made a mistake.  
  
She looks up at Dr. Lecter who has a look of satisfaction on his face. Tiffany's gaze falls to the floor. She had just told Dr. Lecter something she had tried to keep as far in the back of her mind as possible. She searched franticly, trying to find something, anything, to change the subject. Hannibal waits patently, watching her anxious blue eyes search over his cell. He had seen his patients do this before. First, he would say something revealing the real problem or thing they had been hiding from themselves. Then, it's a matter of strength. Those who are weak fall silent and he has to wait a few more sessions to get anything out of them. The strong take it and are willing to talk to him about anything he asks, without the use of drugs. The people like Tiffany know they are weak but feel the need to surround themselves with false strength. The girl's eyes scan slowly over his books and she smiles inside.  
  
"You like Dante?" she asks, once again making eye contact with Lecter.  
  
'She tries so hard to keep people out.' He looks over at his bookshelf then back to her, "I have read some of his work. Which are you familiar of?"  
  
She relaxes some, "I had the pleasure of reading A Divine Comedy before coming here. It was very entertaining."  
  
"Was it an assignment? For school maybe?"  
  
He had done it again. He was persistent and she hated it.  
  
"No, I was going through the old books in the schools library and stumbled upon it."  
  
Hannibal smiled, she was starting to, reluctantly, open up. "So how was your school life?"  
  
'God, please don't do this.' The voice in her head said. "It was ok I guess." She replied in a shaky voice, trying to sound convincing but failing. And he knew it.  
  
"You guess? You were there correct?"  
  
"I was there but everyday was pretty much the same for me. Go to school. Go to five different classes and listen to five different lectures. Then go home."  
  
'Lire.' Lecter thought, 'I should bring her back into reality.' "Were you bullied much in school?"  
  
Silence. Lecter watches her, seeing tears form in her eyes. She holds back and looks down at her hands, which are closed gently around the flower. Tiffany looks behind her at the camera then back to the flower.  
  
"Are you going to answer or do I need to guess?"  
  
Still avoiding Dr. Lecter's eyes, she speaks softly. "I was picked on."  
  
"How much would you say?"  
  
"A lot. By everyone."  
  
She stands up and slowly walks up to the cell next to the sliding tray. Looking up she gasps a little seeing Hannibal standing right on the other side leaning against the glass watching her. She gently places the paper rose into the tray and pushes it through to him. He reaches in and removes the flower turning it over in his hands and admiring the work.  
  
"Something else you learned in school?" He said still looking at the flower.  
  
Tiffany smirks, "No. I had to teach myself something in prison or else I would go insane."  
  
He shakes his head. They were both leaning against the glass now. "All this detail from just thinking it."  
  
"I've had time to practice."  
  
Dr. Lecter smirked then sniffed the air. "Time to go. Hello Barney."  
  
A look of disappointment appears on her face as Barney grabs her arm. "Goodbye Dr. Lecter."  
  
"See you tomorrow then?"  
  
she turns around fast. "Tomorrow?"  
  
He nods, "Yes. There is still work to do."  
  
A look of anxiety and fear crosses her face. Then only a smile, "Tomorrow then." And with that she left the basement. 


	3. The Dream

Tiffany lay awake on her cot for the third night in a row. Sleep had been like an enemy to her, bringing back old memories of fire, blood, and frightened screams. The first couple of nights had been easy. She would relax in her cell thinking of TV shows and movies. She would get math and poetry books to keep her mind off other things. She liked meeting Dr. Lecter. He scared her to the point of fascination. Tiffany closed her eyes and smiled, her bitchy parents had sent her to a psychiatrist after their methods stopped working. A look of anger came to her face. They were better off dead. The lights flickered on and she heard a door open to the main hall. She listens to the footsteps until they are one cell away then sits up and stretches her arms up, forcing a yawn.  
  
"Morning Barney. Sleep well?"  
  
Barney smiles at her, "Thanks Tiff. I slept pretty well. Let me check on everyone else then I'll take you with me, I've been struggling trying to make a paper balloon."  
  
"I really need to show you the basic folds." Tiffany smirks.  
  
Barney gives a short laugh then continues on. Tiff slowly stands and walks to the small sink in the corner. She turns on the cold and splashes the water onto her face. She runs her damp hand through her long hair and brushes the tangles out with her fingers. Satisfied with her appearance, she sits on her cot and leans her back against the wall. Was she really going back to see him? The one person who could frighten her to the point of tears. She began to get fearful. A murderer was getting in her head. Learning things about her that no one else knew. Worse than that, he was a cannibal. He knew all the painful ways to kill someone. Tiffany sat up quickly as she heard footsteps approach her cell. She took a deep breath and collected herself just as Barney stepped into view.  
  
"Now, you know the rules. You stay with me. If you try anything, your back in your cell."  
  
Tiffany stands and smiles, "Got it. Stay with you and be good."  
  
Barney opens the cell door and Tiff steps out. They begin the walk down to the basement.  
  
Tiffany finally speaks up as they reach the last flight of stairs. "Hey Barney. I need a favor."  
  
Barney slows his pace and looks over at her. "What kind of favor?"  
  
"I wanted to know if I could look at Dr. Lecter's profile."  
  
Barney sighs, "Why do you want to read about Dr. Lecter?"  
  
"After yesterday I think I should know some about him since now he knows things about me."  
  
"Well why don't you just not go back in there?" Barney asks, holding the door of the guard room open.  
  
She smiles and walks in, "But he would consider that rude. Even I would call it rude."  
  
Barney nods to the other guards and sits down. "If you want to go back in, then ask him. He might give you some answers."  
  
Tiff sighs, "Maybe your right. Is he awake?"  
  
"I haven't checked in on them yet." He stands up and presses a button on the wall near the bar doors. "I'll be right back." He closes the door and walks down the hall.  
  
Tiff takes her seat at the screen and watches Barney and Dr. Lecter talk. After around two minutes Barney nodded to Dr. Lecter and glanced at the camera before starting to walk back. When he reaches the doors again Tiffany is already waiting.  
  
Barney gives her a half worried look, "You sure you want to do this?"  
  
"Is there a time limit?"  
  
"I'll be nice today. Just come to the doors, I wont interrupt you. He's waiting for you."  
  
"Thanks." She steps through the doors and watches him shut them before starting the walk. She passes easily by the first two cells then glares at Miggs, keeping him on his bed. When she gets to Hannibal's cell she sees him lying calmly on his bed and she takes a seat in the chair. She closes her eyes and yawns deeply, trying to be quiet so as not to wake Lecter.  
  
"Are you feeling well today?"  
  
She looks at the seemingly sleeping figure of Hannibal, "Yea, I'm feeling fine." It felt bad lying to Dr. Lecter but something inside of her said he knew.  
  
He sits up and looks at her. His eyes made her feel small and she wanted to look away but she didn't want to show any weakness. He looked her over. "You seem very drained. And the look in your eyes makes me wonder if you have been sleeping." He pauses to see her reaction then begins again. "Do you dream much?" he asks with a smirk thinking of his conversations with Will.  
  
"I don't like dreaming"  
  
"Does it show you too much? Show the faces of the families?"  
  
She starts to break, "No. No."  
  
"It didn't take you long to choose who you wanted to kill. You went to school and choose all the people who mocked you. Laughed at you. Thought they were better than you."  
  
She was rocking back and forth a little trying to keep grip on everything. Dr. Lecter watched her in amusement wondering what she will do next.  
  
"Then on your birthday, something triggered it. Pushed you over the edge. What was it?"  
  
She looked up at him, "I wasn't use to a party so I wasn't concerned but..." she stopped.  
  
He tilted his head a little trying to catch her eyes again. "Did they beat you? Use a belt or beat you down with their bare hands?"  
  
"They used their fists. When I fell, they kicked me a few times before sending me off to limp back to my room."  
  
"But you didn't stay in your room did you."  
  
She shook her head, "No. I opened my window and grabbed my Zippo lighter and left carrying lighter fluid."  
  
"How did you do it?" Lecter asks, his voice seeming more soothing now.  
  
Tiffany gets that odd gleam in her eye again and finally looks up at Dr. Lecter. In her eyes Hannibal sees the things that had her moved to the maximum security. He stands and walks up to the glass getting a closer look at the girl behind the shield.  
  
She began to speak in a voice barely audible. "I went down wind for a few hours until I came to the first house."  
  
"You need to speak up a little or move a little closer please."  
  
He didn't expect her to move closer but she surprised him by coming right up to where he was standing but didn't make eye contact.  
  
"I chose a window on the first floor and pushed it open. I went to every door in the house, coating it with lighter fluid then I did the same to all the windows except the one I would use. I just made a maze to get there. I lit the first door and after that the whole house was in flames. I ran fast, knowing the complex path I made. I always made it out."  
  
"Did any of them ever get out?"  
  
The smirk instantly vanished and Hannibal knew he had hit another nerve. She sunk to the floor, using the glass for support.  
  
Tiffany took a slow ragged breath. "One."  
  
Hannibal sat down too. Only three inches of glass separating them. "She beat the game you made? It made you mad didn't it? One of the people who believed they were better, smarter than you, beat you at your own game. What did you do?"  
  
"I was so mad. I was standing in front of the window, waiting to hear the sirens that signaled me to leave when I saw her. She jumped out of the window and got down on her hands and knees coughing and hacking. She looked up at me and I lost it. I kicked her onto her back and..." she paused, "I ripped her throat out." Tears started coming down her cheeks.  
  
Dr. Lecter sat there watching her, feeling a little pity for the girl. He let her sit in her quiet weeping in his company for a little while until he stood and grabbed a small towel and something off his desk. He placed them both in the tray and sent them through. The sound made Tiffany look up. She stood and walked over to the tray, reaching in and removing the contents. She heard footsteps approaching and dried her eyes with the towel. She looked at Dr. Lecter and he nodded and turned sitting down at his desk. Tiff turned to see Barney walking toward her. She held the towel close to her and began walking out of the basement and back to her cell.  
  
Once in her cell and barney was out of sight, she opened the towel and looked at the object the doctor had given her. She smiled and placing it under her cot, she laid down and fell into a dream filled sleep. 


	4. A Bloody Mess

The next day, Barney came by to tell her that that Hannibal was having chest pains. After severe begging, Barney took out his keys and took her with him. They walked down the same corridors but passed by the door to the stairs. She looked up at Barney who's pace was quick and he seemed intent on getting somewhere.  
  
"Where are we going?"  
  
"We moved Dr. Lecter to an area where the nurses can observe him."  
  
"You really want to get there, huh?"  
  
He opens a door and they enter a large room with only one other door with a small window looking in. She feels a slight nagging in the back of her mind and she walks over to the door when it suddenly opens and a doctor steps out. The doctor and Barney walk over to the other side of the room and start talking in low voices. Making sure no one was watching her, she walks to the door and looks in the window. At the back of the room, Dr. Lecter is strapped to what looked like a trolley. The nurse has a clipboard and was scribbling things down as she looked him over then went around to the back of Hannibal and began to unstrap him.  
  
'Big mistake.' Thought Tiffany watching the nurse make mistake after mistake. She manages to catch Lecter's eyes and sees him give a wink just as the nurse removes the mask covering his mouth. Tiff gives him a confused look until he lunges at the nurse. Even though his hands are tied, the force he hit her with was enough to knock her onto her back. She could have stopped him. She could have told someone. She could have run in there and pulled him off her. No. He would have turned on her too.  
  
An ear-piercing scream interrupts her thoughts and she runs into the room stopping right in front of the doorway as Barney and the other guards push past her, grabbing a feral looking Hannibal. They haul him off the frightened, bleeding nurse and Tiffany gets her first look at the real Dr. Lecter. His face and teeth are covered with wet blood and he appears to be chewing something, then swallows. Lecter tries to pull out of his captors grasp but Barney pulls back on his arm and Tiff hears a faint snap. She moves out of the doorway as they walk the sobbing nurse out of the room. There is a deep bite mark on her right cheek and one of her eyes has been punctured. Blood drips to the floor from her mouth and she stares in disbelief, realizing that the thing Dr. Lecter at was her tongue. She watches Barney and two others strap him back down as he calms down then switches her attention to the mask laying at her feet.  
  
Barney wheels Hannibal up to her, "Tiffany?" Barney holds out his hand.  
  
"Oh. Yea. Sorry." She hands the mask to Barney never taking her eyes of Lecter's bloody face.  
  
Barney turns to another guard, "Take her back to her cell. I'll take Dr. Lecter to his." The guard nods and takes Tiff by the arm. Barney pushes the trolley through the open door and three minuets later the guard leads her back to her cell.  
  
She sits on her cot feeling sick at what Hannibal had done. When the guard closes the cell door he says to her, "I'm sorry you had to see that. It was a bloody mess."  
  
As the footsteps fade away, she stands up and walks dizzily over to the sink. She doubles over, throwing up and turning on the water to wash it down the drain. Taking a deep breath, she goes back to her cot and sits beside it taking out the gift Dr. Lecter had given her the previous day. The picture was of Florence and drawn with remarkable detail. She had never been there but with all her time alone in libraries some of the things had managed to sink in. In the bottom corner of the drawing though instead of a signature, there was a small drawing of an orchid flower. Tiffany smiled faintly then turned her head and listened. Someone was coming. Barney. Hearing the keys scrape the lock then the door slide open, she placed the drawings on her pillow and looked at her guest.  
  
"Are you ok?" Barney asks, taking a seat beside her.  
  
"You broke Dr. Lecter's arm?" she replies, "Is he ok?"  
  
"He'll be fine."  
  
"And the nurse?"  
  
"The people at the hospital are going to do everything they can for her." He gives a short quite laugh, "I guess I should have let you see his file."  
  
"Why do you say that?"  
  
"Well if I had let you see it, then today wouldn't have seemed so bad."  
  
"I think I'm done for today. I'm just going to sleep the rest of the day."  
  
Barney gets up and leaves the cell. Tiffany looks over at him, "Are you going to see Dr. Lecter again today?"  
  
"Yeah." He replies, "Anything you want me to tell him?"  
  
She lies down on her back, "Just tell him that I hope he is ok."  
  
Barney shakes his head and walks off. 


	5. Released

Tiffany lay in bed for days, teaching herself new folds and thinking of things she knew would be better off forgotten. She hadn't seen Dr. Lecter since his attack on the nurse three days ago. On the second day, Barney had come by and told her that Dr. Lecter had requested to see her. She solemnly shook her head no and asked him to tell Hannibal that she wasn't feeling well. The next afternoon, Barney came by again with the same message.  
  
"Want me to tell him your still ill?" Barney asks, concerned.  
  
Tiffany buries her head in her pillow and nods. Barney sighs and walks off, leaving her to sulk quietly on her cot.  
  
Today was different though. Barney started down the hall to her cell and she could hear him whistle.  
  
'I didn't know he could whistle.'  
  
He walks up to her cell and opens the door.  
  
"Your unusually happy today Barney." She sits up and smiles, "What's up?"  
  
"Your old prison called and said that they dislike the was Dr. Chilton went through all that time, and wasted all of their time, to move you here then go on his "business trip".  
  
"So?"  
  
They are going to be here tomorrow morning. They are taking you back. And in a year you're going to be getting a foster family."  
  
Her face lights up. "You're serious?"  
  
"Yeah. Your almost 14 and have been showing good behavior, even here."  
  
She gives Barney a hug. "I need one last favor." She says as she lets go of him. "A piece of gold paper and I want to see Dr. Lecter, please."  
  
"Ok, but after refusing to see him when he asked, I cant guarantee he'll see you."  
  
They walk out of the cell. "I'll take my chances."  
  
Sitting in a nice cushioned chair, Tiffany makes slow, careful creases along the golden square of paper. She pauses every now and then to look at what she has done so far then continues. The clank of the door makes her jump and she looks up at Barney.  
  
"He wanted me to tell you that he does not wish to speak with you right now."  
  
"Did he say why?"  
  
"He said he wasn't feeling well. Maybe he caught what you had." He frowns, "I'm sorry Tiff. I tried."  
  
"Yea." She finishes a fold then stands. "Now I get to try." Carrying the piece of paper, she walks to the bar doors and smiles at Barney.  
  
"He doesn't want to talk. It would be rude to go in there when he already refused."  
  
"If he doesn't want to talk, then I wont talk to him."  
  
Barney gives her a skeptical look, "You're switching his words around."  
  
"I'm being specific."  
  
Barney nods and opens the doors. Her shoes echo as she comes around to the front of Lecter's cell. There is no chair out this time so she shrugs and sits on the floor where the chair normally is. Hannibal is sitting at his desk drawing something, completely aware of his unexpected visitor. He continues with his work and Tiff just calmly sits on the floor pretending he isn't even there and quietly finishing up folds on the paper. She sits politly for a long time until her leg falls asleep and she has to switch her position.  
  
Sensing that she is not going to admit defeat Dr. Lecter finally speaks, "Even though I tell Barney I don't want to talk he sends you in anyways." He looks over at her obviously waiting for a response.  
  
Tiffany smiles, "You didn't want to talk so I was polite and didn't talk until you wanted to."  
  
"Clever girl. I will be more particular about how I word my sentences." He moves his chair around to face her. "I'm curious. You came here now and yet when I invited you, you made up a absurd lie."  
  
"I wasn't ready to see you. Not after what you did." She pauses, debating whether or not to add her comment, but could not hold it back. "You ate her tongue!" She meant it to come out as calm as possible instead of exploding out like it did.  
  
"You knew who I was before you first met me. And from everything you did, I didn't think it would effect you that much. If I frightened you to a point beyond recovery then please tell me." He smiles at the slight laugh she gives at that comment. "Tell me, have you ever eaten tongue? Any kind. Cow, Pig."  
  
"No, I try to avoid eating anything that has been in people's or animal's mouths."  
  
"So," He said getting back on topic, "Why did you want to see me today?  
  
"I'm leaving tomorrow."  
  
"Ah. So you wanted to say one final goodbye?" He said leaning back in his chair.  
  
"You assume too much." She said smirking. Lecter looks at her with questioning eyes. "After seeing the mistakes these people make, your bound to escape sooner or later. They underestimate you. I just wanted to say goodbye, for now." The look in her eyes was that familiar one, just a little less violent.  
  
Knowing in this state she comes in and out of, he can ask her anything and she will answer. "You seem so certain that I will get of here. Do you fear what I would do? That if I got out of this place, I would come to visit you? Find out what really makes you tick?"  
  
"What you would do to the people out there who are unfortunate enough to meet you and be rude to you, I'm worried because I saw what you did to an innocent nurse. As for you coming to see me. I would be flattered. Terrified at first, but then it would pass, maybe. It would be hard for you to find me. As soon as I get to my foster parents I'm not going to stick around there long."  
  
"You don't think I could find you if I wanted to? Maybe your one of those people who underestimate me?"  
  
She laughs quietly, "No. I just said I would be hard to find. Hard not impossible. Dr. Chilton is one of those people I spoke of. I had the misfortune of meeting him only once and I wish him a painful death."  
  
Dr. Lecter smiles and nods, "If they heard you speaking like this then I highly doubt that they would permit you to be released."  
  
Tiffany stands and walks over to the tray. She pulls a flap of the folded paper and places the object into the tray, pushing it through to Hannibal. He lifts it out and admires in aw the golden orchid flower.  
  
"It's for the picture you drew. I thought you might like it."  
  
"Thank you. The picture was to thank you for the rose but your talent amazes me, Tiffany."  
  
"Well. Give, receive, and give again."  
  
"Time for you to go Tiffany." 


	6. A New Life

I could have ended this story at the last chapter but I had to know what the people think. (winks at Zackery and EGL) I wont write anymore until I know what you guys think. (  
  
A year and a half later, Tiffany is spending her 15th birthday with her foster parents. She enjoyed a sweet vanilla cake and a few presents, nothing she wanted but it was better than her birthday beating and her 14th in prison. The eerie glow of the full harvest moon broke the darkness as it escaped from behind thick clouds. Keeping her head down she admired the reflection in the lake, being reminded of that day's sun. A bright orange circle in they sky and the warm weather of early June. The sound of folding paper comforted her as her fingers smooth the wrinkles out over the cool aluminum foil. She pushes a corner down and sets the shimmering boat into the still water. Lying down on the grass, she guesses it should be around 12:30.  
  
'I'll go back in a few hours.' She thinks, closing her eyes.  
  
She listens to all the sounds around her. Directing her hearing to the lake, she listens to the quiet swimming of beavers on the surface and the occasional splash when they dive. A crash of water signals a bird landing in the lake. The single splash made her think of a duck and the silence breaking quake confirms her guess. A slight rustle of leaves makes all her attention fall in that direction staying still on the ground, eyes closed so as not to draw its sight to her. Unless it already knew she was there. The speed of the steps it was taking mislead her at first to believe it was a deer or dog until she heard a dragging of leaves like someone shuffling their feet, not like an animal who would try to stay quiet and wary of predators. Moving evenly she reaches down to her back pocket and held an old curved knife in her right hand, being sure to keep it out of plain sight.  
  
'Better safe then sorry.'  
  
As the person got closer, Tiffany felt a familiar calm and shifted slightly. The person must have been watching her closely because their step slowed and Tiff knew she was found out. She casually sat up and pulled her knees up, resting her chin on them and placing her knife under her shoe. She could tell by the walking pace and build that it was an older man so the feeling of worry left her and she tucked her old dull knife back into its leather holder. He was about ten feet away now and she turned to try and catch a glimpse of his face. He was wearing rather dark colored clothes and a hat pulled down over his eyes shrouding his face with a shadow. She kept her eyes on him as he walked out of the park and fallowed the road behind the trees. Her bad habits were catching up with her again and she knew it as she stood and, mocking his pace, fallowed his steps.  
  
Reaching the exit of the park, Tiffany found herself standing under a streetlight and caught a glimpse of the man ahead of her turn a corner. She sped up not wanting to lose sight of him for very long. Turning the corner only little under a minuet after he did, she had lost him. She sighed and decided to go home. Glancing around at her surroundings, she realized that this was her street. Momentary panic showed itself. Did the man live on her street? She wandered about the street looking at all the houses trying to find one with a light on or something but they were all dark. Shaking her head in disappointment, she opens the back gate and enters through the unlocked back door. Moving quietly past the room of her 'keepers' as she called them, Tiffany scaled the stairs and entered her room.  
  
The dim light of her room was perfect for her eyes and there was a lot of space due to the fact that the only things in the room were a computer and a bed. That was all she needed. Sitting on the side of her bed she flipped on the screen. Something was wrong. She knew it. She could feel it. Jumping off the bed, she took out her knife and looked around the room. She saw it, neatly placed on a pillow of her freshly made bed. A nicely folded piece of paper. Setting down the knife, she walks over and picks up the letter opening it and reading two lines.  
  
'I found you now lets see what makes you tick.  
Be Seeing You.'  
  
Tiffany let the note fall to the floor as she looked in horror at her computer screen. A news article was up.  
  
'Renowned killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter escaped custody. Kills two officers, two ambulance drivers, and a tourist.'  
  
She sinks to the floor and unplugs the computer. Locking her door, she climbs into bed and after a while she slips into sleep. After an hour or so, a slight click comes from her door and it opens. Dr. Lecter steps inside and walks over to Tiff. Looking at the curled up figure he spots her right hand hanging off the side of the bed loosely holding her knife. He lifts up her hand and takes the knife from her and replacing her arm on the bed. He looks at the cuts on her arms and shakes his head in disapproval. Placing a hand on her head, he lightly runs it over her soft hair then places a familiar object on the keyboard next to her.  
  
"See you soon." He whispers to her, and then leaves. 


	7. Don't Trip

Tiffany burned the note that morning on her walk to school using a new, prized barbwire print Zippo lighter she had obtained by a five-finger discount. She ripped Hannibal's letter into several pieces and lit one by one, letting some of them burn down to her fingertips before blowing them out. Other pieces, she would let burn in here hand, no longer minding the slow burning of the flame on her slightly scared palm. Fist came the intense heat, then the itching, and then the burning that subsided when the nerves died. Before her school came into view, Tiff took a long look at the only part of the note she had not burned.  
  
'Be seeing you.'  
  
She lit a corner of the paper and looked at the house to her right. No cars, no lights. They were already at work while all the other houses slept. She changed. She didn't know how but she could feel it inside her. The ignited paper touches a row of water-deprived bushes beneath a wooden window frame and they instantly become engulfed in gray smoke. She enters her school, very happy she was up wind and entering the building with many other people. She was calmly talking to her friends five minutes later when she heard the fire trucks. They were forced to evacuate the building for fear that the fire may jump to near by buildings. Walking past the flaming house, she hears a high-pitched squealing over the roaring of the water on fire and shouts of firemen. Quickening her pace, an explosion fallows her, forcing her to look back at the sorry people who had gotten too close at the wrong time. One person catches her attention. He was standing a good distance away from the house when it exploded and hardly seemed moved by it. He turned towards her and without making eye contact, casually walks in her direction. Not needing to get close up to identify him, Tiffany walks slowly away from him knowing he'll end up catching up with her, but she has no intensions in running home yet.  
  
Walking past her house, she doesn't even glance at the two cars in the driveway. She fallows the same route she took that night, keeping her eyes ahead of her and feeling the change under her shoes from hard road to soft grass and sand. Her eyes scan over the park and lake. Vacant. No fisher in their boats or lining the shore. No kids swimming or playing. The fire must have gotten more attention then she thought. Turning a corner behind some tall, thick bushes, she makes sure Hannibal can't see her then drops her book bag near the lake and scales a large tree. She climbs up until she is satisfied that no one would be able to grab her and pull her to the ground. Tiffany watches Dr. Lecter walk down the hill to her book bag and look around. She smiles down at him, admiring how natural he is trying to be.  
  
"I have a good view from up here." She says in a casual voice. "Everyone must be staying inside or watching the fire."  
  
Dr. Lecter looks up at Tiff, who has a devilish smirk on her face. "Tour lucky that the fire you started was at a house that was being looked at for a gas leak. The note landed in front of the leaking pipe. They've ruled out arson but, it was very messy not like you other ones. May I ask what triggered this relapse?" He questions looking up at her and taking in the things that had changed about her over the years.  
  
She leans against the trunk of the tree, keeping the eye contact. She shrugs, "I don't know."  
  
"You don't know or you don't want to tell me?"  
  
"A little of both."  
  
He was starting to get annoyed but calmed himself. "Why do you stay in the tree and refuse to talk to me face to face?" She doesn't answer. "An animal treed by a predator can not stay treed forever."  
  
"I don't like the example Doctor." She says with a nervous voice.  
  
Slowly losing his patience, his look gets hard, "Then how about this one. A bird in the safety of a cage can mock the cat but sooner or later the cage will be opened."  
  
Tiffany realizes that she had gone too far and starts to descend the tree. Before she gets within arms reach of Lecter she stops.  
  
"I know people pretty well, Doctor. You're probably carrying a weapon with you now, just in case."  
  
Hannibal nods, "I am."  
  
She gets her footing right, in case she has to reclimb the tree to avoid an attack. "Can I see it?"  
  
He reaches into his coat pocket and retrieves a beautiful, shined harpy knife. Tiffany admires the curve of the small blade and watches him replace it in his right, inside coat pocket. She carefully climbs down the tree but a branch breaks under her weight and she falls. Bracing herself for the hard landing, Tiffany shuts her eyes and feels only the back of her head hit something then rough hands holding her. The ground never comes. She dizzily opens her eyes, which takes more strength then she thought, and sees a blurry face, then only darkness. 


	8. Needle and Thread

Tiffany woke up to a sharp pain in the back of her neck. She shot up and her hands flew to the source of the pain where she found a large bandage had been placed over the area. Her fingers move over the bandage and she winces as they touch a damp spot. She glances at the small amount of blood on her fingers then looks in horror at her surroundings. She sits on a soft bed in an unfamiliar room. The only light entering the room is from the closed curtons of the windows. Her heart races. She is injured in an unfamiliar place with someone she considers a predator and her, his prey. Tiff stands up and stumbles but keeps her balance. Her head throbs but she makes it to the door and silently opens it. Every sound she hears hurts but she can't place where Lecter is. Taking careful steps down the hall, she spots the front door. She opens it just enough to see the sunset before the door is slammed shut and she is thrown against the adjacent wall. She cries and tries to run but Hannibal pins her. Tiffany struggles out of instinct but cant fight in her condition.  
  
'He caught me! He caught me! He's going to kill me. He's going to eat me. He's going to hurt me. He's going to do to me what he was going to do to that nurse.'  
  
She thinks back to the gore of that day. As a last try, she uses her last bit of strength to try and pull away but feels a slight rip on the back of her skull and stops fighting. The hungry look on Dr. Lecters face softens and his grip on her loosens.  
  
He bends down to her ear, "Relax." His haunting voice is soothing to her nerves. His hand moves to the back of her neck and she takes a sharp breath. "You seemed to have pulled a stitch going through your little tantrum. I am going to need to fix that."  
  
She thinks to the first time she had met Hannibal. She was so anxious, so happy that he had wanted to see her. She had wanted to meet him in person. He fascinated her, not just because of his crimes, it wasn't that in the least, but because of how he was so calm and polite. Now she wanted nothing more than to leave. There wasn't anything separating them now and he could easily cut her throat without giving that much thought to it.  
  
"I need to go." She whispers.  
  
"I can't allow you to leave this house. At least not yet."  
  
Attempting to keep calm, she asks in a stronger voice, "Why?"  
  
He gently takes her by the wrist and leads her to a couch in the living room. The both sit and Dr. Lecter moves Tiffany's hair away from her neck and inspects her torn stitches.  
  
He shakes his head in disapproval, "What a mess. You have reopened your cut."  
  
"Are you avoiding the subject Doctor?"  
  
"I'm putting the most important things first."  
  
She hears a rustling then a pain on her neck fallowed by a pulling. She tenses up but Hannibal just continues working.  
  
"I was doing what was in the best interest for both of us. If I had left you then you would have bled to death. If I had dropped you off at your house or a hospital they would have recognized me. If I let you leave now, they would ask where you got your stitches and would like my escape and you together because of our little meetings in the dungeon." He pauses to tighten the stitches forcing a whimper from Tiffany. "I told you before I brought you here that I might not let you leave, and you agreed."  
  
Trying to stay still, she feels anger boiling up inside of her. "I didn't agree to anything."  
  
"Why would I lie to you?"  
  
She was shaking now. "You tricked me! I was concussed and going unconscious. You knew I wouldn't be able to disagree..."  
  
Lecter pulled the last stitch tight, replacing her angry rambling with a stifled cry. He dabbed the cut with peroxide and placed a new bandage on it. Standing, he walks around the couch holding the needle and remainder of wire and turns towards her. She has streams of tears running down her cheeks and is refusing to meet his eyes. Bending down, he softly kisses the top of her head.  
  
"I'm sorry." He whispers and walks into the kitchen. 


	9. Revenge

Placing the needle in the garbage, Lecter moves to the sink and turns on the warm water. He squirts a little soap onto his palm and places his hands under the water, the fresh blood flowing freely from his hands. He hears quiet footsteps entering the room and he gives a slight smile, politely moving aside so his visitor could get cleaned up too. Tiffany places her hands under the running water, rubbing her fingers almost furiously trying to get the blood out from under her fingernails. Hannibal eyes the scars on her hands, from fire no doubt.  
  
'I wonder...' He thinks placing his hand on the knob for cold water and calmly starts to turn it off.  
  
She is aware of the sudden change instantly and moves her hands more slowly. Dr. Lecter watches and mentally records her reactions. With a quick turn of the knob, the cold water shuts off and the water begins to steam. The sudden change in temperature makes her gasp and jump in shock but she keeps her hands under the water not wanting him to win again. She had always hated water burns. The nerves took longer to stop then they did with fire. Her breathing slows and her heart rate becomes normal again as she watches her hands change colors from their normal white color, to a bright pink, then to a dark red color.  
  
'Any longer and I'll cook myself.' She thought and pulled her stinging hands from the boiling water.  
  
Lecter turns off the water with a twist of his wrist and hands a soft hand towel to Tiffany who cautiously accepts it, gently patting her now pink sore hands avoiding an area that looks like the making of a blister. He takes her hands noting the slight flinch as he blows softly on them. It's not from pain, but fear. Having her there made him think of new ways to experiment with her but he turned the idea away for the moment. She had suffered enough for the day.  
  
"I suggest you rest while I prepare dinner." The thought of having food at his house made her stomach lurch but the expression on his face reassured her. "Forgive me for not having any appropriate dining clothing for you to wear. Your arrival here was unplanned and I did not want to leave you alone."  
  
"Its ok. I never really dressed up to go out or anything before." She was talking casually now.  
  
Hannibal could tell she was opening up again. 'It doesn't take long for you to get over something does it?'  
  
She glanced up at his face, into those haunting eyes and then, remembering him still holding her hands in his, she pulls them back and turns out of the kitchen. Hannibal smirks thinking of future events then continues to prep the food.  
  
Tiffany walks back to her room, looking at the front door and thinking better of it knowing that if she tried to run she would get lost and he would kill her, plain and simple. Aside from that, it was locked and the 'good doctor' had hidden the key. Upon entering the room she had woken up in she decided to leave the door open so as not to draw the curiosity of Dr. Lecter. She slowly laid down on the inviting bed and felt suddenly tired. Lying on her side, her back to the door, she listens for any signs of someone coming down the hall but hears nothing and eventually dozes off to sleep.  
  
A strong scent awoke her and she wanted nothing more than to just drift back to sleep but her keen sense of smell denied her that possibility and she forced herself to rise and stretch. Attempting to roll and crack her neck proved much more difficult than she had imagined and the pain brought her back to where she was. She turns into the bathroom and washes her hands and face and brushes her hair, trying to make herself what she thought Hannibal would consider relatively acceptable. When finished, she slowly walks to the dining room where she found a beautifully laid out dinner. She walks into the kitchen and sees Lecter dressed far more elegantly then her.  
  
He turns and faces her, "I really need to buy you some better clothing."  
  
She smirks. "It really would be a waste of money. I can't think of and time I would ever use them other than here."  
  
"Still, you should always be dressed appropriately for certain occasions." He says, leading her to the dining room and politely pulling out her chair for her to sit.  
  
For dinner, first he gave her some broth to see how well she could handle food. That was fallowed by meat, which she was wary of until Dr. Lecter assured her that it was only beef and teasingly offered to take the first bite if that would help reassure her but she declined. If it were human, then he wouldn't mind in the least taking the first bite. They talked while they ate. Pleasant chat of what they had been doing over the years. He told her of him helping Agent Starling with the Buffalo Bill case then escaping (leaving out some of the more gruesome details). Mentioning that he 'disposed' of Dr. Chilton made Tiffany gag some but then she turned the mood saying that he probably didn't taste that good. Finally she asks a question that had been bothering her for some time.  
  
"Why are you in Florida Doctor? I thought you might have stayed out of the U.S. for a while. You wouldn't have endangered yourself just to prove me wrong."  
  
"You're half right. I didn't come here at first to see you. I have an old friend I need to pay a visit. When I found out that you too live here I felt as though I could kill two birds with one stone. Metaphorically speaking of course." He gives a wink.  
  
She thinks to all the articles she had read on her computer the keepers had given her as a welcome present. Will Graham, the former FBI agent. He had been the one who put Hannibal away. She thought hard trying to remember the things she read, poking at her food. Then it hit her. Will was living in Florida with his wife and son. She sat her fork down and leaned back in her chair. Lecter wanted revenge. She was jolted back out of thought as Hannibal refilled her glass of water.  
  
He tilted his head at her, "Everything ok?"  
  
She smiled at him, "Yes, just thinking" She gazed down at her full cup and took a sip.  
  
After dinner, Tiffany felt unusually drained. Something was wrong and she knew it looking up at Dr. Lecter, who was watching her closely. Looking at the cup that he had refilled, she began to breath heavily. Gripping the glass in her right hand she looked at the few remaining drops at the bottom. She flung the cup at Lecter but missed his neck and shattered onto the floor. She stood up, fighting the effects of the pills he had slipped her, and bolted to her bedroom fallowed quickly by Hannibal. She entered the room and slammed the door behind her locking it and grabbed a book lying on a dresser near her bed. She heard Lecter pounding against the door and a cracking but ignored it. Smashing the book through the window she collapses onto the carpeted floor hearing the door open and footsteps approach where she lay. She felt herself lifted up into the air and laid onto the bed. Tiff opened her eyes and met Lecter's, giving him the coldest look he had ever seen.  
  
She glared at him, her eyes filled with hate and disgust, and whispers, "You think what your going to do to Will is revenge. I'll give you a redefinition when I wake up." And with that passed out. 


	10. Unusual Punishment

Tiffany woke up to a familiar smell. It was stronger this time, not like food or candles.  
  
'Candles...' she thought, and jumped off the bed into a cloud of thick gray smoke.  
  
She knew this. It was the thing she dreamt of every night. Same smoke same heat but this time she wasn't asleep. She ran for the window but I had been boarded up and engulfed in flames. Calming herself some, she picked up a piece of glass and went to the door but it was too hot to open. She was trapped. She knew! She had done this before. Moving to the other side of the room across from the door, she hoped that Hannibal had broken the door enough to let her get out. Bracing herself and feeling an animalistic instinct come over her. It was strong and took control of her. She hadn't felt this way since she lit the first fires on her birthday. Gripping the knife-like piece of glass in her hand tightly feeling blood drip off her hand, she runs full speed at the door and knocks it down with a crash. She feels burning on her arm but shakes off the pain. She can deal with it after she gets out and deals with Lecter. She walks down the hall and puts a hand over the flame on the arm, cutting off the oxygen and putting it out. She checks every door and window, finding them all closed and locked.  
  
She gets impatient, "You want me to fallow your little plan?" she says to herself. Looking at a close by window. "Sorry to disappoint you." She runs at the window the same way she did at the door and falls through. She lands on the hard ground and crawls away from the house. She lays on her back, in sever pain from the glass shards in her arm. She sees Lecter standing over her looking at her wounds. Filled with anger and hate she lunges at him with the glass and puts a gash in his arm. He grabs her arm tightly making her scream in pain and he throws her to the ground. Putting a hand over her mouth and the harpy agents her throat.  
  
"Do you think this is how she felt? You put up a fight though. She didn't, did she?" Tiffany struggles, trying to get his hand off her mouth but he is too strong. "I would have done more but I still do not know what 'special treatment' you gave your parents." She watches the harpy vanish back into his coat and he pulls out a syringe. Sticking it carefully into arm, he injects every drop of it and watches her body go limp. Her breathing steadies and heart rate returns to normal. He lifts her up and places her into his car.  
  
Looking her over he says to her, "Dinner time." And they drive off.  
  
Tiffany's eyes open weakly and she takes in her new surroundings. She could tell that it was a different house and she had a more spacious room. She began to cry. Tears for Lecter drugging her, for him locking her up in a house to be burned alive, and for him not killing her when he had the chance. He could have killed her, he should have. She wanted death now more then ever. Trying to role over onto her side, a sharp pain came over her and she cried out uncontrollably from the pain. The tears came down harder and she heard footsteps coming to the room. Quieting her sobs she stayed lying on the bed and looked at Dr. Lecter with sad eyes. Remembering the ordeals of the night of fire she knew that she wasn't injured anywhere near her stomach.  
  
"What did you do?" she asks Hannibal in a soft voice almost dreading the answer.  
  
He sits beside her and puts his hand on her head softly. "You are going to need to stay in bed for a few days until I am sure that you are going to make a full recovery."  
  
"A full recovery from what, Doctor?" she asks her voice getting a little higher.  
  
"Don't worry. Your body can function perfectly with only one kidney."  
  
She goes pale and gags. Hannibal holds up a small trashcan for her and pulls back her hair as she vomits into the bucket. Lecter leaves her crying and returns with another pillow. She doesn't want to take it at first but he sets it down lightly on her other side and once he backs up she grabs the pillow and holds it tight against her looking as if she will never let it go. He sits with her a few minutes longer, her eyes never meeting his. He stands and quietly slips out of the room, leaving her to cry in peace. 


	11. Aftermath

Tiffany was forced to stay bedridden for days. She hadn't eaten anything Lecter gave her after she had learned of her unwanted operation. She was getting thin and Hannibal brought her soft foods and sealed water, telling her that she needed to eat after an operation to get her health back. On the forth day, the pain had decreased some and she could sit up in bed if she was very careful. She had been coaxed into eating something the day before but only had a few bites. She was drinking water now but only if it came from a sealed bottle for fear of poisoning or another drugging. Dr. Lecter constantly checked on her and assured her that he would not kill her. This gave her temporary comfort until she thought about how everything he had done to her hadn't killed her.  
  
Lecter walks into her room that evening, dressed relatively well and wearing black shoes. "How are you feeling?" he asks sitting with her, taking notice of the still full bottle of water he had brought her that afternoon.  
  
"I'm felling better." She says replies quietly, trying to sound as polite as she could.  
  
"I'm leaving for the night. I will be back very late so try to get some sleep."  
  
She nods and grabs the bottle holding it and making no attempt to open it. She thinks to Will, the poor guy.  
  
"Please don't try anything Tiffany." Hannibal says to her softly but getting his point across. "The last thing we need is you getting hurt again." He gently pulls a strand of her hair behind her ear. He stands and walks out of the room.  
  
She lies in bed, listening to the silence after he leaves her room. It takes him five minuets before she hears his car leave the driveway.  
  
'Probably wants to make sure I'm not going to do something.' Tiffany thinks, opening the bottle and taking a swing.  
  
She waits another three minuets before sitting up straight and taking the blanket off. She wanted nothing more then to stand up and stretch her legs but she still hadn't fully healed. The gash in her head had mended pretty well and she and Dr. Lecter both knew she would need her stitches removed soon. She takes a deep breath and slowly moves to the edge of the bed, carefully placing her feet on the floor. Tiff shifts her weight forward some onto her feet and winces feeling the stitches on her side pull. She stands up and stumbles, leaning against the wall for balance. Painstakingly leaving her room she finds the bathroom and cleans herself up. She wanders aimlessly around taking note of the kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms, dining, and living rooms. The rooms are warm and inviting, with all the beds stuffed with goose feathers and the couch cushions fluffy and comfortable. She knows right away that she enjoys this house far more than the last one that Hannibal set on fire and hopes that this house doesn't meet that fate. Walking into Dr. Lecter's bedroom, she opens some of his drawers and changes from her old clothing to some of his warm over sized clothes. Wearing barrowed sweat pants and a t-shirt she walks back to the living room and lays down on the couch, pulling a blanket that was neatly folded on the end of the couch over her. She lays on her uninjured side and smiles. She couldn't remember any other time she had felt this happy and warm. Hannibal entered the house quietly around 12:30 am satisfied with his work and with a decent amount of blood on his hands. He takes a shower, changes, and walks to his room. Looking carefully at his neat room he turns and walks back the way he turns and walks back the way he came, away from her room. Entering the living room he looks at the sleeping figure huddled under piles of soft blankets that rise and fall with every breath. Watching her, he is vaguely reminder of Clarice then turns and retires to his room for the night.  
  
Tiffany woke first, her back sore from lying in an awkward position and resting on her stitches. She finds moving very difficult after walking and lying on her back all night. She concentrates, thinking and fallowing the same procedures as she did getting out of the bed after Lecter left.  
  
'Hannibal! Did he come home and check her bed? Was he mad? Did he come back at all? Maybe Will shot him.'  
  
A feeling of worry shot through as she checked herself for new incisions. Still just two cuts, her head and side. Getting to her feet, the pain was serious now.  
  
'The first time I don't listen to a doctor it turns out he was right.' She smirks and walks to the kitchen.  
  
After she opens all the drawers and cupboards she finds a bottle of painkillers and flips the childproof top off. Too easy. Without reading the back of the bottle, she puts two into her hand and grabs a bottle of water and downs them. Replacing everything just as she found it, she picks up the blanket and walks back to her room passing quietly by Dr. Lecter's room. Hearing his soft breathing told her he was home and he could stay sleeping if she didn't making any loud noises. Closing the door behind her, she settles down on her bed covering herself with the blankets and cuddling with a pillow. 


	12. The End

**This is it people. The long awaited end of the story. I want to thank EVERYONE who reviewed. If you could, keep checking with my info on this site. I'm writing more stories as you read. I'm writing Pirates of the Caribbean and Van Helsing. If you guys want to help, I need some help thinking up character names. Go ahead and e-mail me some suggestions. ;-P hope you have enjoyed this as mush as I have.**   
  
Tiffany wakes up in the early afternoon refreshed from a decent night of sleep. Sunlight floods into the room from an open window and a warm breeze lets itself in. she sits up and hangs her feet over the side of the bed.  
  
'The pain killers must be working.' Tiff thinks as she stands and walks out the open door.  
  
Walking aimlessly around the house, the sound of water from a faucet catches her ear and she fallows it into the kitchen, where Dr. Lecter is cooking. She never enjoyed eating with Hannibal. His cooking was wonderful and tasted excellent but it was what he cooked and the events after dinner that she hated. Even though his back was turned, she knew that he knew she was in the room. Tiffany had learned early on that Lecter's sense of smell was exceptional. She had once thought it was because he is a cannibal, a predator who, like most predators, relied mainly on their sense of smell to determine if they survive.  
  
Smoke rises from the stove he is standing at and she inhales the strong small of scrambled eggs and bacon. As she scans the counter for any medicine bottles, Dr. Lecter starts talking with out turning away from his cooking.  
  
"Good morning Tiffany. I'm glad to see that you're on your feet again. Please sit." She sits at the kitchen table as Hannibal sets a plate of eggs and bacon in front of her. "Lets call it a late breakfast."  
  
"Thank you," she says quietly. The medicine she had taken had made her very tired and not hungry, but she appreciates the gesture. Seeing Lecter beginning to clean up, she became wary of the food. "You're not eating?"  
  
"I have already eaten."  
  
She cringes at the thought of poor Will Graham.  
  
Hannibal glances at her from the corner of his eye. "I didn't drug it. If I was to drug you after you took the pain killer, it would have very bad side effects."  
  
She takes five bites of her eggs and eats half of her bacon then stops, having little appetite. He waits until she takes a few more bites of her eggs before removing the plate. After he washes his hands, he walks back to Tiffany who is still sitting at the table, seemingly lost in thought. Placing a hand on her shoulder she jumps slightly and looks up at Dr. Lecter.  
  
"I need to check your stitches. You have had them in for the necessary time and I need to see if its time to have them removed."  
  
She nods in agreement and looks down at her hands on the table as he moves her hair to the side. She can practically feel his eyes as they move over the stitched up flesh on the back of her neck. He asks her to move forward some so he can check her side stitches and she obeys. He lifts her shirt (or his shirt that she barrowed without permission) up carefully over the stitches. The flesh is normal colored and the skin, although not as healed as the head wound, is ready to have the stitches removed. Rising from his kneeling position, he offers his hand to her to help her to her feet. She cautiously takes it and he leads her to his room and she sits on the bed next to his bag of medical equipment. She shivers as cold hands wrap around her neck. She expects choking but the hands don't tighten. They point her head forward then down a little. There is a rustling in the bag behind her when the hands release then she feels her hair being put into a bun on her head.  
  
"Try not to move. I'm going to try to do this as delicately as possible and if you jerk or pull away it could tear." His fingers run gently over the row of neat stitches, "Are you ready?"  
  
She refrains from nodding and just answers, "Yes."  
  
After the first two stitches are pulled, Hannibal pauses for a moment then begins working slower. "Since I have you in this position, there is something I have been meaning to ask you before you left the prison but I never had the chance."  
  
Tiffany already disliked the sound of this but she just waited.  
  
"I want to know about your parents." He paused for a split second to see her reaction and felt her take a sudden inhale and a tremor run down her back. He began to steadily work again.  
  
"I don't remember anything about it. I've blocked it out."  
  
"Really? That's too bad, although everything else tells me different." He pulls the last stitch and smiles. "There. Will you please lift up your shirt some and lay on your stomach?"  
  
She fallows his instructions, the pain at the base of her skull showing more pain then annoyance. Lecter sits and looks at the stitches holding the cut closed. The incision hasn't fully healed yet and it is still sensitive to the touch.  
  
He sighs as if debating. "This one is going to hurt a little more." He begins to pull the first stitch and she tenses up. "Don't fight it just relax." His voice is calming and her skin loosens as she relaxes some.  
  
"I don't like talking about my parents. They weren't nice to me and I wasn't nice to them."  
  
"Tell me about what you did. It will get it off your chest and stop me from bothering you, but don't lie or I'll know."  
  
She hesitates and feels the stitches being removed, giving her something to concentrate on. "It was the last house, right after the one where the girl got out so I still had blood on my hands. I went in through my bedroom window and into the bathroom to wash my hands. I felt like I had done a good job. The few finger prints I left were burned to a crisp and the first house fire burnt most of the skin off of my finger tips." She paused for a moment to gather herself. "Coming back from the bathroom, I had my finger tips bandaged to help the blisters. I saw my parent's door and remembered what they did to me and felt like my work was incomplete. I went back to my room and got my lighter. I knew my dad kept a small handgun in his bedroom door. I had to get it. I didn't have a plan so I went with my first instinct. I found some rope in the kitchen then got the gun."  
  
"But you didn't shoot the did you."  
  
"No."  
  
"They didn't deserve to die so quickly did they?"  
  
"I hit my dad over the head with the handle of the gun. It took two hits to knock him out. My mom woke when I first hit dad, but it only took one well- placed hit to take her out. I took the rope and tied my mom's right wrist and ankle to the handles on the side of the bed, then did the same to my dad's left arm and leg. I tied their free hands and feet together and left then to go get more gas." She takes a moment to gather herself. "When I came back, my parents were already starting to wake up. I started putting the lighter fluid on their legs and chests, listening to them yelling at me, saying how bad they were going to beat me once they got loose." She lets out a sad quiet laugh, "I finally gagged them and poured gas around the bed. I left the room and poured gas on all the windows and doors then put all the empty cans and bottles in my room. I went back to my parents room, said my goodbyes, and lit the fire." Hannibal pulled the last stitch and places a clean white bandage over the little bit of blood. "I sat down on the driveway, hearing the police getting closer, and watched the fire. They put me in the backseat and took me away."  
  
Lecter offers her a hand and she takes it cautiously, sitting up at the foot of the bed. He looks at her curiously, "You didn't run or try to resist?" He already knew the answer but he wanted to know how far she would go with it.  
  
"No, there wasn't any reason to. They would have traced it back to me, just because I felt like my work wasn't finished. I had to get to the base of the problem."  
  
Tiffany watches Dr. Lecter rise gracefully and walk to his closet, remove a clean pair of jeans, and place them on the bed beside her.  
  
"Please get dressed. Your shoes are in your bedroom. Come into the living room once you have cleaned yourself up." With out giving her another look he walked out of the room.  
  
Tiffany takes a few slow steps into the dim room. Hannibal is sitting in a comfortable looking recliner next to a table lamp, deep in thought. She spots her sneakers sitting neatly beside his chair and move quietly to his side. Sitting on the ground, putting on her shoes, and practically leaning against the chair, she feels uncomfortably venerable to an attack, having her neck exposed, but dismisses the thought of an unprovoked move form Hannibal. She hears the book close and looks up at Dr. Lecter who is standing in front of her. He offers his hand and helps her to her feet but does not release it. He leads her to the front door and opens it, letting the sun warm Tiff's face. Still holding her hand, he turns and locks the door behind them.  
  
She looks up at him as he leads her to the car. "You can let go," she smirks. "I'm not going to run. I don't even know where I am."  
  
Lecter continues walking acting as though she hadn't said anything. He opens the door for her and releases her hand politely.  
  
They drive for a few minuets before Tiffany begins talking. "What happened to my shirt?" She pulls at Hannibal's large shirt she is wearing.  
  
"Forgive me, I took the liberty of throwing it out. The blood from your head had stained it."  
  
He pulls on to a dirt road and they drive threw the woods. She sighs and looks down at her feet, knowing what he is doing. He parks the car and gets out coming around to open the door for her. She steps out and walks beside him.  
  
She looks up at him, hating how hard he is to read. "Where are you going to go? The FBI are going to be everywhere. Your already on the 10 Most Wanted list."  
  
He smiles down at her softly, "Where would the fun be if I told you? And it wouldn't be wise for a fugitive to tell where his hiding spot is going to be."  
  
She thinks for a moment, "Florence?"  
  
He gives a short laugh and whispers, "Now I'm going to have to find somewhere else."  
  
She smiles, feeling like she is a little child again, "I won't tell."  
  
He gives her a proud smile showing his white teeth and gives her a wink as they approach the lake. Passing by a small patch of beautiful wild flowers, Hannibal bends down and picks one handing it to her as they reach the tree next to the lake. She takes it and gives a thanking smile. Hannibal lightly takes her hand in his and places a soft kiss on it.  
  
She watches him turn and playfully calls to him, "Send me a postcard."  
  
He gives her a quick glance from the woods and sees tears. As he sits in his car in the airport parking lot, he wonders if they were tears of happiness or of sadness.  
  
Tiffany stands rooted to the spot for three minutes before forcing her legs to move. Half way to her home she stops and smells the flower then pick a few more yellow and blue flowers. Maybe her keepers... parents, would like them. 


End file.
